Most of the line ministries are allocating poor funds of their total budget to climate change schemes, according to a climate budget report.
Bangladesh is most vulnerable to the extremes of global climate change.
A significant portion is allocated for food security, social protection and health, but it is meagre for research, capacity building or mitigation, it found.
The findings were shared at the launch of 'Citizen's Climate Budget Report 2018-19' in Dhaka on Sunday.
The finance division prepared the latest report with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The report provides a snapshot of such allocations of 20 ministries or divisions regarding their total allocation from fiscal year (FY) 2014-15 to FY '19.
The ministries/divisions together comprised 45.84 per cent of the total national budget of FY '19, but only 8.82 per cent was climate-relevant, it found.
Deep disparities also exist among the ministries when it comes to climate change allocation, the report revealed.
For example, only five of the ministries have made more than 20 per cent allocations to climate schemes.
The top allocators are environment, forests and climate change ministry (53 per cent), water resources ministry (41 per cent), agriculture ministry (39 per cent).
Meanwhile, fisheries and livestock ministry spent 24 per cent and disaster management and relief ministry 22 per cent funds for the purpose.
On average, 15 ministries spent only four per cent of their total budget for such schemes, the report found.
When it comes to allocation as per thematic areas, it was found that most of the budget was for food security, social safety and health (46.01 per cent).
It was 28.43 per cent in building infrastructure.
Very small percentages have been allocated for research (4.57 per cent), mitigation and low-carbon development (6.61 per cent) and capacity building (4.68 percent).
"We need to revisit the climate finance tracking methodology to remain consistent with the revised Bangladesh Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan," said macroeconomist Dr Shaikh Moniruzzaman.
He is with the inclusive budgeting and financing for climate resilience (IBFCR) project of finance division.
"Capacity building across ministries to determine climate allocation is also important," the expert said.
Officials said 20 ministries have been brought under the purview of the report, but it will gradually cover the entire government.
"Climate public finance tracking is necessary as it indicates where further financing is necessary and policy prioritisation needed," said Abu Sumon, climate change expert of the project.
"At this stage, only public finance is considered for tracking climate finance," he added.
"Once private sector financing is systematically introduced in the updated Climate Fiscal Framework, this method can be extended beyond public finance."
"The budget report will create demand to handle climate financing in an appropriate manner," said Mohammad Muslim Chowdhury, comptroller and auditor general.
Environment, forest and climate change secretary Abdullah Al Mohsin Chowdhury said, "The government will undertake the National Adaptation Plan soon."
"This report will provide credible information on the country's climate finance landscape to various stakeholders," he hoped.
Finance division additional secretary and IBFCR national project director Dr Md Jafar Uddin and IBFCR project manager Ranjit Kumar Chakraborty also spoke.
